Democratic Northwest. [volume] (Napoleon, Ohio) 1869-1894, 1887-05-12

he knowed. lie hadn't much larnln, rnaE
faI,ar hadn't Somebody in the crowd dropped |
n bie weller enyellup. Providence put it where |
the rough felleris eve Lit on it the minute It
dropped. He picked it up. When the mus
,Ieared away he tried to find the owner. He
was a honest feller, il he was poor, the rough
Teller was. Its Gurus, but there haint been :
no owner found for them papers down TO
this yer time. They're fastened into the back |
of my journal The boy that got 'em was
t'other kid whatalways had luck agin him"
There the Journal ended, at least all that
could be made out. There was more, but 1t
was only incoherent maundering. The name
Of "Carstonen could be made once or twice,
and once the name Of "Edgerly,n and the
word brother" The tramp was on his last
legs. But at the end of this strange story
there were several legal looking documents
One was to the effect that in such a year
male child, four or five years old, parentage
unknown, was found alone in room with
dead man, recognized as burglar. The child
was taken to the st. Hildegarde asylum, and
afterward adopted by John and Frances
| Edgerly Of Broomshire.
| 'iit's lien exclaimed Robert Edgerly.
''There's some Internal mistake about it. l
don't believe a word of it."
| "Wait," said Shirley: Write to your
| father. ana tell ullll uDOuI ~ huON u
strange story, about two boys, twin brothers,
who were stolen from their home"
But Robert had not so long to wait. When
| events do begin to happen, they come IN a
rush. 1t was not day later when the young
man got this letter: Slit
"MY DEAR SoN-My health is failing,
more rapidly than you think for. want
| YOU and Brownie to come home anu sUay
| with me the rest of my time.
"There is something on my mind 10 tel
| you | ought to have told you before, DuC
never could bring myself to do it. You would
know it after my death, at any rate. fer-
haps it may not be SO terrible to you TO near
the truth from me- l am sure my wife ana
could not have cen more tenderly attached
to you if we had been your real parents, And
no son could have been more devoted and
dutiful than you always were to us; no son
could have realized more faithfully fathers
and mothers brightest, fondest hopes
"But Robert, my boy, you were not our
own son. We were absent from home tor
several years On our return we adopted
Won, a lonely stray little boy, in the st;
Hildegarde orphan asylum. None Of our Old
friends knew but you were our own You
never knew it.
"Your parentage is unknown. The only
clew is the forget-me-notr ring, found fastened
To n black ribbon around your neck, with its
inscription and date inside, 'Myra, from
Phiiip. July, 1854. But am sure you came
of GOOD blood. When we found you there
was still that about you that showed you had
been tenderly cared for:
II would spare myself forever the PAIN OF
telling you this, only IL IS necessary fI,a fEu
should know YOU ore not to be my heir. Inc
estate must go to q distant relative, now IN
Australia There is another thought that
gives me anxiety, now that l know am
hearing my death. ! have not been able 70
save much for you from my income IN
truth, have let you spend so much money IN III
nv lifetime that there will not be much iett
for YOU after am dead. And still, even that
causes me less trouble than it would II dld
not know how capable you are and strong,
I mover brought you up to despise work, my
son. In the New World, the land OF prom
ise, know you will easily make your way.
, But not now. Now you must come home, you
, and Brownie, and come at once, TO one VINO,
as long as he lives, must still call himself
! "Your loving father, JOHN EDGERLY."
The whole story was out. The American
! tramp and the English gentleman were twin
: brothers, of one blood, one race, one parent
r age, and even that unknown.
, Here was blow which staggered Robert
Edgerly at last!
he and Brownie and Shirley had been read
ing the letter, with their heads together, al
9 | at once Roberts head dropped upon the
t table in front of him. Shirley could moi
bear it.
a 1Roberti brother, said she, don't. Hardly
anything is worth taking q serious view, OF II
:, this life. May be it'll even turn out you're al
. abominable American at last"
But it was too much this sudden whlrllnl
inside down of all his existence: He go
e upon his feet. Where was his pride of race
# of familys 81. =, :,
"a aI-I.never was so cut up in my life," b
a said family. "Who am II Nobody, with n
- country, no name. I'm nobody's son!"
> He choked up, and turned away, to tn
window. Shirley followed him and linke
is her arm through his.
IS "But you're Somebody's brother" she sale
a. "and very dear one"
Brownie cuddled up to him on, the othe
- side.
le s'And rmsure ou're somebody's husband
10 Brownie murmured, land the darlingest tht
n ever was"
It. And with two beautiful women, the dea
,e | est beings on earth to him, thus consolin
him, what masculine creature could nay
been wholly comfortlessa
r. TO BIZ CONTINUED.